Monday, May 15, 2017

Christianity Today Reports on Tragic Guatemalan Orphanage Fire

Christianity Today – March 2017 reported the following:
Earlier this month, a fire at an orphanage outside of Guatemala’s
capital caught international attention. Forty children died of carbon
monoxide poisoning and burns; the tragic event drew worldwidecondemnation.

But the aftermath of the fire has given hope to those who work with
the Central American country’s orphans. As the government turns to
evangelicals for help, it seems the tragedy may spark the breakthrough many have been praying for.

In some ways, the tragic blaze—set intentionally by children locked
in the overcrowded facility—was not unexpected by evangelical experts.
In 2006, Orphan Outreach founder Mike Douris told the Guatemalan
government that the orphanage’s design wasn’t a good idea.

The government went ahead and built it anyway—another link in a chain
of wrong moves. For decades, Guatemala has had some of the worst child
welfare practices on the planet.

In 2015, the country had the second-highest rate of child murders in the world. Of the crimes against children that get reported—including murder, rape, kidnapping—most go unpunished (88%). An estimated 2 in 5 children are malnourished.
Among indigenous children, that rises to 4 in 5. Tales of overcrowding,
abuse, and malnutrition leak out of orphanages like the one near the
nation’s capital, Guatemala City, where dozens died in the recent fire.

The infamous orphanage, the Virgen de la Asunción, was built for 400
children but housed about 750. Inside, orphans were physically and
sexually abused by staff and by other children. There were complaints about water leaks and poor food quality. Only 3 of the 64 security cameras in the building were working.

The conditions resemble fellow public orphanages, which house about
1,200 children in Guatemala. At least three times as many live in
private orphanages (about 4,000), but that’s still a small fraction of
the 370,000
orphans that UNICEF estimates live in the country. Since Guatemala has
no foster care system and very few domestic adoptions, virtually every
child removed from a neglectful or abusive situation is sent to an
orphanage. Many more live on the streets.

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Robin Sizemore, Executive Director of Hopscotch Adoptions Inc, was recognized in 2012 by the Winston-Salem Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc as a person who has "Transform Lives and Impacted the Community". Among five other recipients, Robin Sizemore, was recognized in the area of "International Awareness" for her work and advocacy of children through international adoption and aid. Robin was also the recipient of the "Angels in Adoption" award in 2008, in recognition of her service to children since 1995.